This is a plea. Please, stop shopping at Walmart. The products are only slightly cheaper than their competitors, and what you save in anxiety, frustration, and hope for humanity by not shopping there is worth more than the four cents you save on shampoo and the dollar off your family-sized Crisco.

I went shopping with my mother today. I witnessed several things. Firstly, the managerial staff were all hanging around the aisles, leaning on columns and gossiping about their subordinates. Not ten feet away from them aisles were clogged with unmanned pallets and buggies. Obviously, their associates were supposed to be restocking. On a Friday. In the middle of the day. Let that sink in. I know you’ve been to Walmart. I know you’ve seen how busy Walmart is on a Friday. You already can’t move because of the sheer amount of flesh bouncing around in the aisles. What kind of idiotic managerial staff has their associates doing a full restock on a Friday?

When my mother and I finally made it to the checkout, the cashier did not speak to us once. Not even to tell us the total. In fact, when we asked how much the total was, she turned the display so we could see it. Do I blame this cashier for being antisocial? No I do not. And here’s why.

Walmart is a circle of suffering that feeds on itself, like a snake devouring its tail. The employees are miserable because they have to deal with miserable human beings. These miserable human beings shop at Walmart due to the convenience of finding everything in one place. Yes, people shop there because of the lower prices. But more people shop there because they’re lazy. Where else can you buy shoes, milk, trash bags, makeup, and a new set of tires, all while getting your oil changed under the same roof? (I am fully aware that disabled persons and people who've simply fallen on hard times frequent Walmart as well. We'll get to one such person at the end of this post. For now, we're talking about lazy people.)

Lazy people are notoriously selfish. (If you have any question about the laziness and selfishness of the people in question, go out to your local Walmart and check out the wardrobes of the folks roaming the aisles. Pro tip: breathe through your mouth when within close proximity.) Is it any wonder that Walmart customers are in such a bad mood? I mean, they have to deal with all these other people just to get their shopping done. And then what happens? They let their vitriol overflow on Walmart associates.

Of course the people in customer service at Walmart are mad at the world. Look at the entitled jerks they have to deal with on a daily basis. Of course Walmart cashiers aren’t friendly. Look at the people they have to ring up. Of course our cashier didn’t talk to us. She was probably afraid we were going to bitch her out because the managerial staff decided to do a full restock on a Friday.

But does complaining work? No it doesn’t. When you call Walmart’s complaint line, you don’t actually speak to a human being. A computer asks you questions about the store number, the time and date, and then asks you to describe your experience. At the end of the recording, you are told that your complaint will be sent to your local Walmart. Someone there will look over your complaint. What good does this do if part of the problem is the managerial staff? Am I to believe that the managers who were leaning against columns and gossiping about their employees will actually care that I had a bad experience inside their store? You know what’s going to happen – my complaint will get deleted and nothing will be done. My local Walmart (which is located in Prattville, Alabama) will continue to give the same poor customer service as it always has, because people will continue to shop there, and the snake will continue to eat itself.

So if it’s not going to make a difference why am I writing this? Well, this is nothing more than a plea, really. Maybe if more of us stopped shopping at Walmart, something might be done. Maybe if more of us complain, managers will actually start listening. Yes, Walmart is a mega corporation that truly only cares about one thing — money. Little old me is not going to change that. Unfortunately, I have a mother who shops there and refuses to go anywhere else because she’s disabled and can get everything in one place. No in and out of cars. No trekking from place to place in hundred degree heat. And oh look at the savings. Who am I to argue? Still, I see how Walmart affects her. She’s always a much angrier person when we leave that place. She always has something to complain about. And why shouldn’t she, when there is so much to complain about.